Advance Notice. First Fridays at the Natural History Museum.

With the new year comes another edition of the Natural History Museum's ever popular First Fridays series. Thanks to its intellectual hip factor, the program, which combines scientific lectures and discussions with performances up-and-coming musicians, has grown significantly in the past couple of years. And rightfully so -- the booking staff is always on top of good entertainment.

But take note: while it all used to be free, and it used to be easy to try and catch the musical performance by walking in the Mammal Hall that night, the event was causing lines out the door early on Friday nights this past year. Now they've set up a ticketing system, which will surely make it easier for everyone.

And with the first First Friday event coming up on next week (Jan. 7), it's time to get on buying those tickets. Keeping up with tradition, Little Dragon (which gained more exposure after guesting on Gorillaz's Plastic Beach this past year) and Sister Crayon will be performing, and the science discussion will be on "The Science of Creativity," which actually sounds quite interesting -- why do we get our best ideas in the shower? Admission for the night is $9, and you can get your tickets here.

And stay tuned to the First Fridays website for the rest of the series.

-- Chau Tu

Photo credit: Natural History Museum

Do It. Friday concert round-up.

Need some music for your Friday night? We've got a round-up of a few notables, and while these shows might be 'sold-out,' we know you BEATs can work some magic. What's the point of living in L.A. if you can do a little persuading (or a little party-crashing), right?

- First Fridays at the Natural History Museum: although the new (lame) ticketing system for this formerly first-come-first-serve event means this show has been sold out for weeks, this month's edition probably won't bring the crazy, hip-obsessed crowds it did for last month's Yeasayer and Warpaint duo. Deertick and Everest will still be fun though, and hey, you can still find out "Do Flies Have Feelings?"
5:30pm at the Natural History Museum, 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles

- Bird and the Bee at the El Rey: a show with this indie twosome is already incentive enough to head out to Miracle Mile, but they've got something extra special planned for tonight. This will be the only show where they'll be performing from their latest album, "Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates," set to be released on the 23rd. Pop heaven. Will Joseph Gordon-Levitt show up for a dance number? We hope so. In any case, you can even keep tabs on the show from home, thanks to Livestream.
8pm at the El Rey, 5515 Wilshire Blvd., Miracle Mile

- Appleseed Cast at the Echoplex: this one's another special exclusive: the post rockers will be playing their critically-acclaimed and beloved monster of an album, Low Level Owl I & II in its entirety tonight at the Echoplex. That's, uh, 50 songs for you, and at least a solid two hours of pure sprawling, atmospheric. At $15, it's certainly your money's worth to witness live the heart behind one of the ambitious and influential post-rock records to date.
8:30pm at the Echoplex, 1154 Glendale Blvd., Echo Park

-- Chau Tu

Do It. First Fridays at the Natural History Museum.

First Fridays is back! I first discovered this awesome event while in college across the street from the Natural History Museum, and in looking for an easy, cheap concert to go to, I came across what has become one of my favorite things to do in L.A

For the first Friday of every month in the spring, NHM stays open late for a science-plus-music party, all meant to bring out the inner geek in us. The lectures can be hit or miss (and you can always bypass that part by museum-exploring) but the bands are usually pretty cool, ranging from the super local to some bigger names (Wolfmother, A-Trak). And it's all for the regular price of admission (although important tip: there are presale tickets available here, and they're probably worth buying because the performance space is limited). Plus, there's food and drink (yes, beer and wine) and other cool things like screenprinting and live DJ sets.

This time around, it looks like there's going to be some talk about spiders--including real, live ones!--followed by music by Atlas Sound, a not-to-miss live act. Oh, and don't forget those wild animals there--they're always ready to party.

First Fridays begins tonight at 5:30pm at NHM at 900 Exposition Blvd.

-- Chau Tu

Photo credit: Natural History Museum